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Tuesday, 21 August 2012

Top Ten Tuesday: Best Books I've Read Since I Started Blogging

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.1. Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson - Edges out Matson's sophomore novel Second Chance Summer, this is a tearjerker which had me in absolute floods. Do read it, don't read it on public transport!2. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein - One of the best books I've ever read. Completely heartbreaking and with two sensational narrators, this Second World War story deserves all of the plaudits it's been getting.3. Department 19: The Rising by Will Hill - Hill follows up the superb Department 19 with an even better book in this epic, which weighs in at about 700 pages and never wastes a word. Phenomenal.4. Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley - Crowley packs an incredible amount of romance and character development into just one night (aided by some great flashbacks.) It's also incredibly lyrical.5. The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson - I read this on the train back from Birmingham after buying it on impulse at the train station because it looked so gorgeous and had to put it away with about 50 pages to go before I burst into tears. (I REALLY need to think more carefully about my reading habits on public transport.) Utterly wonderful.6. Lottie Biggs is (Not) Mad by Hayley Long - "Brilliantly, staggeringly, life-affirmingly superb" was my initial verdict, and re-reading it hasn't changed my mind. It starts off as a comic romp and develops into a more serious look at mental health issues, but the change in tone is perfectly judged.7. The Monstrumologist: Isle of Blood by Rick Yancey - I thought the first Monstrumologist book was too long - by book 3 Yancey is writing 560 pages and if anything, I wanted it to go on for a few hundred more! Yancey's language is spellbinding and the combination of his writing style and the relationship between the Monstrumologist himself Pellinore Warthrop and his apprentice Will Henry make this series a must-read.8. Pea's Book of Best Friends by Susie Day - Modern classic in the making, this is a wonderfully fresh novel in the spirit and style of greats like Noel Streatfeild and E Nesbit. 9. Paper Towns by John Green - Even better than Green's Looking For Alaska. Stunning dialogue, gorgeous writing, and I can't remember the last time a book moved me from tears of sadness to tears of laughter, and vice versa, as quickly as this one did.10. Skin Deep by Laura Jarratt - Stunning romance which deals with disfigurement, prejudice, mental illness, and recovering from tragedy. Highest possible recommendation.

The Sky Is Everywhere! I saw that in the library and I had such a strong urge to just reread it again because it is such a beautiful book! I agree with so many of your other choices as well, Skin Deep, Paper Towns, Lottie Biggs, GRAFFITI MOON! Ah.

There are so many books on this list that I've been meaning to read FOREVER, but just haven't got around to it yet... Code Name Verity looks AMAZING and everybody keeps telling me to read Graffiti Moon :) Yay for Amy & Roger, and The Sky is Everywhere - I agree with these choices :D

Such awesome picks! I read The Sky Is Everywhere, Graffiti Moon, and Paper Towns all after I started blogging, too, and they are three of my all time favourite :) And I need to get around to Code Name Verity! Have heard so many amazing things about it :)